20 July - 01 September 2024

art meets city

The Austrian sculptor and installation artist Erwin Wurm is one of the most successful and popular artists of our time.

This summer, the artist is presenting four of his cheerfully ironic works in the Kurgarten in front of the Kurhaus.

✓ Great experience ✓ Free admission ✓ Open Air

Der Künstler

Der österreichische Künstler Erwin Wurm, geboren 1954 in Bruck an der Mur, Österreich, ist einer der erfolgreichsten und faszinierendsten Künstler unserer Zeit. Seine Werke sind eine Mischung aus Skulptur, Performance und Installation und zeichnen sich durch eine humorvolle und oft absurde Herangehensweise aus.

Wurm ist bekannt für seine One Minute Sculptures", in denen er Alltagsgegenstände und Menschen zu skurrilen, kurzlebigen Skulpturen arrangiert. Diese Performances fordern den Betrachter zum Mitmachen auf und verwischen die Grenzen zwischen Kunst und Alltag. Dabei geht es nicht nur um das Endprodukt, sondern vor allem um den Prozess und die Interaktion.

Sein Werk ist geprägt von einer spielerischen Auseinandersetzung mit gesellschaftlichen Normen und Konventionen. Er hinterfragt die Definition von Kunst und den Wert von Objekten, indem er sie verformt, aufbläht oder schrumpfen lässt. Seine oft humorvollen, aber auch tiefgründigen Arbeiten laden zum Nachdenken über die Absurditäten des modernen Lebens ein.

Erwin Wurm hat weltweit in renommierten Museen und Galerien ausgestellt, unter anderem im Museum of Modern Art in New York und auf der Biennale in Venedig. Seine Werke sind in den wichtigsten Sammlungen der Welt vertreten, darunter die Tate Modern in London und das Centre Pompidou in Paris. Durch zahlreiche Ausstellungen und seine Präsenz in international renommierten Institutionen wirkt Wurm weit über die Kunstszene hinaus. Seine Werke inspirieren Künstler und Betrachter auf der ganzen Welt. Wurm lebt und arbeitet in Wien und Limberg.

Weitere Infos zum Künstler

The venue

For "art meets city", the Kurgarten in front of the Kurhaus, the green oasis in the heart of Baden-Baden, is transformed into an open-air art gallery.
The Kurgarten is the city's international meeting place for a wide range of events: Baden-Baden Summer Nights, Vintage Car Meeting, Kurpark-Meeting, SWR3 New Pop Festival and the Baden-Baden Christmas Market take place here.

The Advisory Board

The managing director of Baden-Baden Events GmbH Nora Waggershauser has an artistic advisory board for the selection of artists at her side: Florian Matzner, professor at the Munich Academy and freelance curator and Johann von Haehling, curator and artistic advisor.

More about the advisory board of "art meets city".

The Artist 2024

Erwin Wurm

The Austrian artist Erwin Wurm is known for his unusual depictions of everyday life: They not only question conventional viewing habits, but often also the associated and culturally conditioned world view of our time. His works have already been shown in many of the world's major museums and can be found in the most important international art collections, such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Tate Gallery in London and the Centre George Pompidou in Paris. In 2017, Wurm designed the Austrian pavilion as the official contribution to the 57th Venice Art Biennale.

The first of four artworks

Big Disobedience

By alienating the seemingly familiar in a caricature-like manner, Erwin Wurm enables a different, equally ironic and critical view of things. His love of everyday banality and witty detail is both an inspiration and part of his creative process. More information about the artworks will follow soon.

Did you know?!

Frequently asked questions about art meets city

What is art meets city?

At art meets city you can discover what art can be in an open air setting. Experience the Kurgarten in a completely different way. Exchange ideas!
Art brings people together; to think and to experience.

In addition to the renowned addresses on Lichtentaler Allee, such as the Museum Frieder Burda and the Staatliche Kunsthalle, Studio 45 cbm and Museum LA8, a new place for art has been announced: the Kurgarten, directly in front of the Kurhaus. In future, art in public space will find a stage here. An invitation to the citizens and guests of the city to experience this well-known and popular place in a new way. Free of charge.

Each year, an artist will have the opportunity to present a work of art open-air under the motto "kunst findet stadt" (art meets city). An advisory board of renowned art experts will make the selection. The event is organised by Baden-Baden Events GmbH.

Which artists have there been so far?

In 2021, art meets city celebrated its debut with artworks by the world-renowned artist Jeppe Hein and in 2022 the italien artist Marinella Senatore. In summer 2023, Nevin Aladağ transformed the Kurgarten in front of the Kurhaus.
Click here for the review.

Is there an entrance fee for art meets city?

No, kunst findet stadt and the program is free of charge.

What is the best way to travel to art meets city?

Here are a few tips for a relaxed journey.

Travel by public transport

Get from A to B easily, comfortably and environmentally consciously: The Baden-Baden public transport company ensures this every day and also at night with a dense network of routes and frequencies. The operating branch of Stadtwerke Baden-Baden provides a total of 47 buses for this purpose - and as one of the first public transport companies in Baden-Württemberg, it also provides two hybrid buses.